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A review by ameyawarde
Leonardo Da Vinci by Walter Isaacson
5.0
Leonardo da Vinci has always been one of my heroes, purely because like recognizes like and even as a child I was able to recognize that he and i shared a neurotype (but, obviously, NOT the same level of talent in the least!!).. the notebooks filled with a little bit of everything, the insatiable curiosity.. and, now that I've read (heard) this book, I can add: the inability to finish almost anything, ever!
As someone very into ADHD activism/community, i got a constant chukle out of how thoroughly Leo fits the stereotype, and I was easily able to predict the outcome of any given situation for him. I really think that there is a lot of power in Leo's story for people with ADHD and I'd LOVE to see a book written about him through that lens, and aimed at the ADHD community. Because I damn near got teary a couple times just thinking about how he was able to live the ADHDer dream life, and though people certainly commented on it.. people still loved him. He still got work. He was still able to do the things that he was passionate about. For those of us who try so hard to fit ourselves into a society built soley around neurotypical people, his life is inspirational. How can we make society today a place where all ADHD folks (and, of course, people of all neurotypes, disabilities, and personalities in general) can live to their highest potential like this?
My only complaint about the book is along these same lines (oh, also that renting the audiobook from the library means I didn't get a pdf with all the art works, and it's hard to know how the heck to spell some of the Italian words to google it,) is that I wish the author would have been a little more well versed with ADHD as well, it could have given a little more context, and could have perhaps avoided certain things, like in the beginning there was a bit along the lines of "aren't we lucky that Leo didn't live today, he would have been medicated for ADHD & mood swings and we would have lost his brilliance!" Like, that is a terrible thing to say and, if the subject hadn't been of SUCH interest to me, might have made me stop reading there. Medications do NOT dull anyone's brilliance (if they're the right meds/dose)... but they make life less stressful, AND probably would have let him actually finish a few more things! Meds don't change the neurotype. They just help with some of the subsequent problems, like finishing things. (Sometimes.)
As someone very into ADHD activism/community, i got a constant chukle out of how thoroughly Leo fits the stereotype, and I was easily able to predict the outcome of any given situation for him. I really think that there is a lot of power in Leo's story for people with ADHD and I'd LOVE to see a book written about him through that lens, and aimed at the ADHD community. Because I damn near got teary a couple times just thinking about how he was able to live the ADHDer dream life, and though people certainly commented on it.. people still loved him. He still got work. He was still able to do the things that he was passionate about. For those of us who try so hard to fit ourselves into a society built soley around neurotypical people, his life is inspirational. How can we make society today a place where all ADHD folks (and, of course, people of all neurotypes, disabilities, and personalities in general) can live to their highest potential like this?
My only complaint about the book is along these same lines (oh, also that renting the audiobook from the library means I didn't get a pdf with all the art works, and it's hard to know how the heck to spell some of the Italian words to google it,) is that I wish the author would have been a little more well versed with ADHD as well, it could have given a little more context, and could have perhaps avoided certain things, like in the beginning there was a bit along the lines of "aren't we lucky that Leo didn't live today, he would have been medicated for ADHD & mood swings and we would have lost his brilliance!" Like, that is a terrible thing to say and, if the subject hadn't been of SUCH interest to me, might have made me stop reading there. Medications do NOT dull anyone's brilliance (if they're the right meds/dose)... but they make life less stressful, AND probably would have let him actually finish a few more things! Meds don't change the neurotype. They just help with some of the subsequent problems, like finishing things. (Sometimes.)